John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)

The amendment would have the effect of making the chief executive of the authority answerable to Oireachtas committees on matters pertaining to the authority rather than the more limited definition in the section as it currently stands. Section 13(3) sets out the chief executive's responsibilities as carrying out, managing and controlling generally the administration and business of the authority and performing such functions as may be determined by the authority. It is not proposed to accept this amendment because to do so would put the chief executive in the unacceptable position of having to account to an Oireachtas committee for matters which are outside his or her area of responsibility and might create the risk of the chief executive being drawn into expressing an opinion on Government or ministerial policy on the authority before a committee. That would not be appropriate or desirable for the reasons I outlined earlier.

On the wider remit of the objectives and operation of the authority, the board of the authority is responsible to the Minister and, furthermore, the Minister is responsible to the Houses of the Oireachtas and may appear before the relevant committees to give an account of matters pertaining to the authority.